Ontario’s whistleblower protection laws likely will not help the provincial bureaucrat fired after confidential draft health-care reform legislation was leaked to the New Democrats.That safeguard, as defined in the Public Service of Ontario Act, is intended to ease the path for civil servants who discover illegal behaviour, such as theft, “grave danger to life, health or safety of people or the environment,” or gross mismanagement.“That’s a pretty high threshold,” employment lawyer Joseph Cohen-Lyons, who has written about public sector whistleblower laws in Public Sector Digest, said Thursday. “If you disagree with the policy, it probably doesn’t meet that threshold, even if you’re very against privatized health care.”Another employment lawyer, Doug MacLeod, agreed. “Draft legislation, you’re not going to sneak it by the public,” MacLeod said, noting bills are introduced in the legislature and must pass three separate votes by MPPs following public debate and hearings.“This would put a real chill on the politicians if they thought anything that they were considering might get leaked before they decided to table it. It’s going to really put a chill on people having frank and open discussions about different policy alternatives,” he said.Read more: Don’t panic over Ontario’s looming health care overhaul, former top bureaucrat says iPolitics | NDP’s incomplete redaction of health-care document led the Ford government to the whistleblower, sources sayOntario health minister downplays confidential draft bill that would create ‘super agency’ and allow more privatization“Employees have a duty of confidentiality and fidelity to their employer and this is a clear breech of confidence. This is confidential information that should not be disclosed without consent.”NDP Leader Andrea Horwath has claimed the bill and other leaked documents ...
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